To Google+: If You Have To Say, “Make Sure You’re Using It Correctly,” The UX Needs Work

Google+ has more than 100 million active users, as long as you count them correctly. In a fireside chat at SXSW, Google+ Lead Vic Gundotra said Google’s social network enjoys 50 million users who sign in once a day and 100 million who sign in once a month, calling it the “fastest-growing service we’ve ever seen at Google.”

Those users, however, are not necessarily signing directly into Google +. Instead, they may be signing into one of the services “optimized for” Google+. This includes Gmail and YouTube.

That’s what we call a questionable statistic.

And more:

Still he was … asked why Google+ sometimes seems like a ghost town. Gundotra’s response – “Make sure you’re using it correctly” – drew some chuckles as it brought to mind how Apple CEO Steve Jobs responded to criticism of Apple’s antenna attenuation problem, telling users they were holding the phone wrong. Undaunted, Gundotra told Kawasaki that sometimes users post to empty circles without realizing it.

If you have to give users tips on using it correctly, the user experience needs work. Just sayin’.

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